The past will catch you up (As you run faster)
by Lestaire
Summary: After they almost got killed on a hunt, Dad sends Dean and Sam to a boarding school. Dean is rather fascinated by his roommate (but would never admit it, of course.)
1. Chapter 1

It was getting dark outside. Light rain that could also have been fog made the atmosphere even bleaker than it already was. Dean steered his beloved Impala along the curvy road that led them towards their new so-called home. Sam stared absently out of his window, watching the dully-green landscape flow by as they drove. The two brothers had spent almost their whole trip in silence, which did not really raise the mood, either. Dean still could not really accept or understand the chain of events that led to this situation, but understood that it was probably the best for all of them. He thought back to that day a few months ago when he and his father packed their bags to hunt down another creature, joking, almost looking forward to it. Sammy, in an act of teenage rebellion, proclaimed that he did not want to stay with Uncle Bobby this time and wait for them to come back, hoping it would be in one piece. He insisted on joining them on this job, and of course, neither Dean nor John would allow him to come along. "No, Sammy! It's too dangerous, you know that!" their dad said. "But Dad! Why did you teach me all those things about hunting when you'd never let me use that knowledge?" protested Sam. The kid has a point there, Dean thought. John still didn't seem very convinced, but when Sammy gave him the puppy-eyes, his determination crumbled away instantly.

What they first thought would be an easy job, turned into hell. Things escalated and it ended with Sam almost getting killed and Dean being severely injured. Somehow they got out of it alive, but John never really got over it. He seemed so worried and terrified that something like this would happen again, that he ultimately decided to send Dean and Sam away to a boarding school, hoping they could forget all this and live a relatively normal life. They never really had much time for school and never stayed at one place for longer than a few months, but maybe this was their best chance to get away from hunting. The boys were still upset and disappointed that their father let them down, and Sam seemed like he would never talk to the man again, but Dean kind of accepted that it was the best thing Dad could do to protect them.

As the Impala made her way up the small, dark road, details slowly came into view. The castle that was their new school loomed on a hill not far away. The building was dark and withered and only a few windows were illuminated. With the rain that was slowly getting stronger it almost looked as if it was sad itself.

Shortly after that Dean and his brother entered the school through the enormous wooden main gate. They found themselves in the empty entrance hall. Well, almost empty. Dean looked up and saw a dark-haired boy watching them from the top of the stairs. The boy did not move and just stared at them from insanely bright blue eyes. Dean frowned and looked away. "Come on, Sammy. We gotta talk to the principal." Before they left the hall, he looked back to the top of the stairs, but the boy with the blue eyes was gone.

The principal was a snarky, well-dressed man named Crowley. Judging by his accent he was probably British. He seemed to be the kind of person who despised stupidity, but could be a friendly or at least helpful man if you knew how to use your brain. He talked to the Winchesters for a while, asked them about their trip and handed them their timetables and some other documents that seemed important. After a while Dean stopped listening. Sam would fill him in on everything that was worth remembering. After their conversation, Crowley led the boys to their rooms. Sam got to share his room with a nervous and geeky boy named Chuck, who seemed like someone capable of cheering the younger Winchester up a little bit. Dean's room was two floors above Sam's. When they were almost there, Crowley said "Your roommate is Castiel Novak. He's.. uhm.. He's a bit difficult. But I don't think that is a problem for you, is it?" Dean frowned. "Difficult? What do you mean?". "Well, he isn't exactly the social guy. I don't know why, though... Whatever" The principal cleared his throat. "Here we are. Take your time to get settled. If you need anything, ask me. Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow in my class." Crowley walked away and Dean hesitantly opened the door to his room.

It was dark inside, except for the cold glow of a blue lava-lamp on one of the desks. Seriously, a lava-lamp? Dean thought. This Castiel guy must be even weirder than Crowley said. He looked around and didn't see his roommate. The right half of the room seemed to be occupied. Dean saw two tall white bookshelves that looked like they would break down if one more book was crammed inside. On the plain white wall (Dean supposed they weren't allowed to paint the walls) hung a poster with a weird blue phone box on it. He raised his eyebrow when he saw the drawings that were pinned all over the place. Most of them showed birds or strange sci-fi-like structures (spaceships, maybe?). A closed laptop stood on the desk, next to another stack of books. Dean walked over to his bed and dropped his bag on the white sheets. He took off his brown leather jacked and put it next to it. He sat down and looked out of the window. Well, at least he tried to, but he just now noticed that the room wasn't empty after all. The dark-haired boy he saw earlier in the hall sat on the windowsill and looked out at the rain. He wore a white shirt, black jeans and no shoes. His hair was ruffled and messy. Dean cleared his throat and approached the boy. "You're Castiel, right? I'm Dean Winchester. Crowley said I'm your new room mate." Castiel looked up with an absent expression in his eyes, as if he hadn't noticed Deans presence until now. "Yes, that is correct. Hello, Dean." Awkward silence. "So, I get that you read a lot?", Dean asked. "Yes.", answered Castiel, his gaze turning back to the window. Huh, Dean thought, not really the chatty type... He decided to leave the kid alone for now. He started to unpack his bag and stored away his few possessions. Uncle Bobby said he would send them the rest of their stuff during the next few weeks. But for now, Dean had little more than a few clothes, his laptop and his cellphone. When he finished, he sat down on his bed again and looked at the boy at the window. Castiel had not moved an inch in the last ten minutes. He had his back turned to Dean and still stared out at the now dark sky. For a couple of minutes the only thing Dean could hear was the sound of raindrops splashing against the cold glass. He didn't want to spend the rest if the evening sitting there doing nothing, so he took out his laptop to play Portal for a little while. However, he was interrupted when Castiel suddenly spoke. "The sound of rain is so calming, don't you think?" Dean looked up, surprised that Castiel talked to him of his own accord. "Uhm... yes, sometimes. But right now it's rather depressing than anything else." Castiel stared at him with those piercing blue eyes. "Depressing? Why?" Dean felt slightly hypnotized by the other boy's gaze. He cleared his throat and looked away. "Well, let's just say I'm not really happy about the circumstances that brought me here..." Castiel tilted his head in confusion. "What happened? If you don't mind telling me" Dean sighed. He wasn't sure how much he could tell this boy, but something about Castiel made him want to trust him. "Uhm... my brother and I used to travel around with our dad and help him with his, uhm, job, but one day things kind of escalated and we got injured... Dad decided it would be the best thing if he sent us away. And Sam and I aren't really happy about that..." Castiel nodded. "I can relate. At least to the last part." Dean raised an eyebrow. "You wanna talk about it?" The other boy looked away and pressed his lips together. "Oh, alright. Nevermind." He looked at Castiel's back, trying to figure out the boy with the weird blue eyes. He failed.


	2. Chapter 2

The first few weeks at their new school passed. Dean and Sam had somehow managed to settle in and developed some kind of routine. Sam quickly became friends with his room mate Chuck and a girl named Jo who was in his year. He had always been the more social of the brothers. Dean on the other hand wasn't really the type who made friends easily, so he spend most of his time on his own.

He and Castiel didn't talk much, but certainly not because Dean didn't try. Castiel seemed to be extremely introverted and quiet and almost every time Dean saw him, he had a book in his hands or was studying for school. Sometimes, he would also draw or watch a TV show on his laptop, but he almost never seeked conversation or social contact of any kind.

Dean did not really have much distraction from school, so in order to avoid getting bored he sometimes hung out with Sam and his friends, just to talk to somebody once in a while.

One foggy and grey afternoon in October Dean was on his way back to school after he did some shopping a few towns over. When he walked away from the Impala through the castle's courtyard, he saw Castiel sitting alone on a bench under a large tree covered with Wisteria. Despite the weather getting colder and nastier every day, there were still some of the purplish blue flowers left. The dark-haired boy was watching a robin that was sitting on one of the branches.

The bird flew away as Dean approached, causing a single flower to fall loose and slowly glide to the floor where it landed silently in a puddle.

Castiel looked up to see what had scared the bird away, only to look directly into Dean's eyes.

"Hey, Cas! Mind if I join you?", asked Dean and sat down next to Castiel without waiting for an answer.

For a while none of them said a word. Dean noticed that the robin had returned to its seat on the tree and watched the little bird for some time. A couple of students walked past them, chatting loudly. After they disappeared into the building, Castiel suddenly spoke.

"My parents didn't want me, either."

Dean turned his head to look at the other boy.

"Sorry, what did you say?"

Hearing Cas speak was such a rare exception that Dean couldn't quite believe that he actually heard his voice.

"I said", repeated Castiel, looking up to fix Dean with that sky-blue gaze of his, "my parents didn't want me, either. They thought I'm a difficult kid and sent me away. They think there's something wrong with me... This is more convenient for them than actually putting up with me and trying to help me."

He looked away and continued to watch the bird.

"Oh."

Dean frowned. "sorry to hear about that. Trust me, I know what it's like to feel neglected. But why do they think you're difficult?"

Castiel chuckled. "Something about me being too quiet and shy. I never had many friends, so they probably didn't like that I was at home all the time. Didn't want to see my face, I guess."

A bitter laugh escaped his throat.

Dean awkwardly patted his shoulder in attempt to comfort him.

"I'm sorry, man. I think I know how you feel... Uhm..", he cleared his throat "Listen, I'm not really good with this stuff, but if you ever need to talk about anything... I'm there, okay?"

He tried something like a reassuring smile.

Castiel stared at him with a surprised or even shocked expression, but then smiled back widely.

"Thank you, Dean. I'm not used to being listened to. Thanks for putting up with me, I appreciate that."

Dean raised an eyebrow.

"I don't 'put up' with you. You make it sound like a bad thing... Listen, man, you may be quiet or weird or whatever, but I kinda like you. I never had many friends, either, so why not be outcasts together?"

Castiel smirked. "Sounds good."

He wrapped himself tighter in his light brown trench coat.

"Oh, damn, you're cold! C'mon, let's go back inside", exclaimed Dean.

When they got back to their room, Cas instantly occupied his usual spot on the windowsill and leaned his back against the cold glass. Dean sat down on his bed and examined the opposite wall.

"Hey, I always wondered... what are those strange things you draw? Looks kinda sci-fi... spaceships?", he asked curiously.

The other boy laughed.

"Ha, not bad! Yes, it's actually the inside of a spaceship... of the TARDIS, to be precise."

Dean frowned. "The what?".

Cas giggled. "The TARDIS. That's the blue phone box on that poster over there. It's from my favourite TV show, _Doctor Who_."

Deans face brightened. "Oh, so that's what you watch all the time! What's it about?"

They went to bed late that night having spent hours talking about basically everything. At some point during the evening, Dean joined Castiel on the windowsill.

From then on they would spend almost every evening like this: looking out at the world and watching the sky get darker, while they talked about everything one could imagine or remained silent for hours, but understanding each other nonetheless. If you asked Dean who his best friend was, he would say "Cas" without hesitating the slightest bit, and the same goes for Castiel.

Some weeks later, Dean and Castiel were sitting on their usual spot at the window. Frost blossomed on the glass and painted beautiful flowers and leaves.

It was late November now and it was getting colder every day. It was just a question of time until the first snow would fall. Their room was dark except for Cas' lava-lamp. Its soft blue light shone upon the boys' faces and made everything glow ghostly.

"Dean?", Cas asked carefully "You never told me what it was that you and your father did... What kind of job kills people? Or almost kills them?"

A painful sigh escaped Dean's throat.

He closed his eyes, trying to shut out the world. He had always hoped his friend would never ask this question, never remind him of this other life he wanted to leave behind... But now all hope was useless. Dean thought about his possibilities. What should he tell Cas? Sure, he could make something up, but alone the thought of lying to his only friend felt horribly wrong. But then again, even if he told him the truth, Cas wouldn't believe him... Or would he?

"Dean? Are you alright?"

He looked up and saw his friend watching him with a worried expression in his eyes. Dean cleared his throat and ran a hand over his face in an attempt to gain a clear thought.

"Uhm... okay, I know this will sound crazy and you probably won't believe a single word, but I don't want to lie to you. So please, hear me out, okay?"

He paused.

"My family... we hunt things. Evil things. Creatures from myths and legends and horror stories. They are real. Things like ghosts and vampires, witches and demons. They are all real. You know, my mom was killed by a demon when I was four... Sam and I were raised like warriors. While normal kids played with their friends or went to summer camp, we learned how to use a gun or how to exorcise demons... Not really what you call a good childhood. For years we fought evil together. But after this last job went wrong and Sam almost got killed, Dad said sending us away was probably our only chance for a normal life... You know, Hunters don't live very long. We can't have any personal connections outside the job without risking the lives of the people we love... It's almost impossible to get away from this life, but maybe Sam and I can leave this past behind us..."

Dean fell silent and looked out of the window, trying to hide his face.


	3. Chapter 3

Castiel said nothing and just watched him from the side for a while. Dean started to regret telling him all this. Of course he wouldn't believe him. No one did. Eventually, Cas sighed.

"Okay."

Dean stared at him.

"Okay? That's all you have to say?"

Oops, that came out harsher than he meant it. His friend tilted his head and seemed confused.

"Yes. Dean, listen to me. I believe you. I know it sounds weird, but I believe you. I can't find a reason why you would make this up... and to be honest, I always had a feeling that these creatures you just told me about exist. I can't explain why, though. Whatever. I trust you, so yes, I believe you."

Cas took a deep breath when he finished. Dean managed a weak smile. He sighed. "Thanks, man..."

Castiel smiled and gently squeezed his shoulder.

* * *

When Dean woke up the next morning, a Saturday, he instantly noticed something was off. He blinked a few time before he could open his eyes completely. The light in the room was odd. It was far too bright for this hour at this time of the year. He yawned passionately and glanced over to his clock on the bed table. 11 a.m. He blinked again, trying to adjust his eyes to the brightness. Suddenly, a shadow came into his vision. A Cas-shaped shadow.

"Dean, wake up! Look, it's been snowing over night!"

Dean growled grumpily. The guy was far too excited about this.

"Ugh, snow. Really, Cas?"

He slowly pushed himself into a sitting position and ran his hand over his face.

"Oh come on! Don't be so grumpy! Hey, how about we go outside after breakfast?"

Dean looked up and raised an eyebrow. The sight before his eyes was just too amusing to keep a straight face. Cas was wearing his usual dark jeans and white button-up shirt, but his head was decorated with a ridiculous sock monkey hat.

"Cas, seriously? That hat?" He let out a snort and got out of bed.

He dressed quickly and they went downstairs for breakfast. His friend was practically bouncing through the hallways.

"Jeez, what's up with you, Cas? It's just a bit of snow... Could you please calm down a bit? At least until I've had some coffee?" Dean said while rolling his eyes.

When they entered the dining hall, Dean was immediately greeted by his brother's happy face. Why was everyone so excited abut a few white flakes? He and Castiel sat down at Sam's table.

"Hey guys! Nice hat, Cas!" grinned the younger Winchester.

Dean rolled his eyes and concentrated on his breakfast. Next to Sam, Jo and Chuck were engaged in a heated discussion on how to build the perfect snowman.

Dean tried to ignore them. He definitely wouldn't put up with their childish bullshit this early in the morning.

He took a long sip of his coffee and closed his eyes in delight. He couldn't understand how people survived without this drink of the gods. However, his peace was soon disturbed when Jo asked "I was wondering, do you guys want to go outside with us? Maybe look for a nice café in town to have some hot chocolate?"

Before Dean could refuse her offer (because seriously, him outside in the snow? Nope. Bad idea.), Cas beamed and said happily "Sure! We wanted to go outside anyway, so why not?"

Dean didn't have the slightest chance to disagree.

* * *

"Dean, hurry up! What the hell is taking you so long in there anyway?" Sam called impatiently. He and the others were waiting outside Dean and Cas' room, already in their coats, scarves and gloves. When Dean was finally ready, the group made their way down to the entrance hall.

Dean hesitated before stepping through the old wooden door, suspiciously eyeing the snow that blanketed the courtyard. Cas nudged him and laughed quietly.

"Come on, it's not gonna kill you."

Dean laughed and stepped outside into the cold.

"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure 'bout that!"

They stomped through he snow along the path that led into town. Dean hadn't even reached the large iron gate that marked the border of the school ground when a snowball hit the back of his head.

He jumped and spun around to see who had attacked him. About ten metres behind him stood Jo with a vicious grin on her face, already raising her arm for the next shot. Dean quickly twisted away from the projectile and made and threw a snowball of his own in one fluid move. It hit the completely surprised Jo right in the stomach. She screeched and doubled over dramatically, just in time to avoid the snowball that Chuck threw in Sam's direction.

In a matter of seconds a heavy fight broke out. Needless to say, Dean and Sam were by far the best shots thanks to their experience with guns. To everyone's surprise, Jo did quite good as well. They fought eagerly and filled the air with white balls.

Soon they were out of breath and stopped for a second, laughing happily.

However, Jo used the break to make another big snowball while the others weren't looking.

Without any warning, it flew towards Castiel and hit him hard in the chest. He swayed, stumbled backwards with shock across his face and fell into a giant snow heap.

Dean couldn't help but laugh out loud. Cas looked up to him like a kicked puppy, but joined his laughter after a few seconds. Dean held out a hand to help his friend up. Cas smiled softly, took it and pulled himself up from the snow.

Neither he nor Dean expected that the momentum would catapult him directly into Dean's arms, but it did, and so they somehow ended up in a slightly awkward embrace. They both laughed, their cheeks red from the cold.

None of them noticed that they stood a little too close or that their hug wasn't exactly normal for two boys. But Sam and Jo did. They stared at them, then shot each other a somewhat knowing glance. Meanwhile, Chuck seemed perfectly content with examining his fingers. Dean giggled, cleared his throat and stepped away from his friend. He looked into Cas' hypnotisingly deep blue eyes.

"You okay?"

Castiel smiled and nodded.

"C'mon guys, let's go! Or did you forget about the hot chocolate?" Sam called.

Dean sighed and they started moving again.

* * *

About fifteen minutes later their little group stood outside a small café they had found in a secluded alley. The building was old and seemed like it might collapse under the weight of the snow, but the warm light that seeped through the windows made it look cosy and inviting. The friends stepped inside one after another, knocking the snow off their boots. Dean hesitated for a moment and looked up to the grey sky. The snowflakes had started falling again, small white crystals slowly drifting down to earth. He smiled faintly and followed his friends inside.

They settled around a table in the corner, Dean and Castiel fell into the soft cushions of a sofa while Sam, Jo and Chuck occupied some very comfy looking armchairs. The waitress, a sweet blonde girl with a warm smile on her face, hurried over to take their orders.

As they were waiting for their drinks, everyone shuffled around, taking off their coat, gloves etc.

When Dean peered over to Cas next to him, he could barely suppress a laugh. The boy had just taken off his hilarious monkey hat and now his dark hair stuck out in fluffy strands into all directions, creating the probably messiest hairstyle Dean had ever seen on his friend. The temptation to ruffle Cas' hair was almost irresistible.

Before he could do anything awkward, he smirked to himself and looked over to Chuck and Sam who were discussing the snowball fight from earlier.

"You guys really have to show me you did that!"

"Did what?"

"Your technique! I mean, you and Dean didn't miss a single shot!"

Jo let out an annoyed huff "Hey, I wasn't so bad either!"

Dean tuned out again and looked back to Cas again, who was smiling absently.

"And what's up with you? You're smiling like you're stoned or something."

Cas' glance shot up to meet Dean's. "What? Nothing, I'm just happy, that's all."

At this, the corners of Dean's mouth twitched upwards.

Now would be a very good moment to look away and make casual conversation before things got awkward, but for some reason Dean couldn't.

Castiel's incredibly blue eyes captured him. Something about the expression in them seemed off, but Dean couldn't say what it was. He stared back, feeling hypnotised and probably looking like the dumbest person ever right now. After what seemed like eternity, someone cleared their throat loudly.

"Hey, I don't want you interrupt you two eye-fucking each other, but our drinks are here." Sam said mockingly.

Castiel's eyes widened. He blushed and looked away. Dean straightened himself, realising he had unconsciously leaned closer to Cas.

"Okay, awkward..." he mumbled and reached for his drink on the table.

When he took the first sip from his mug, he froze in surprise. This was probably the best hot chocolate he ever had in his life. Dean closed his eyes and let out a delighted sigh. The rich taste of dark chocolate was perfectly complemented by cinnamon, nutmeg and a hint of cardamom. Hell, if this stuff came with caffeine, Dean thought, it'd probably be better than coffee...

He slowly opened his eyes and blinked a few times before he noticed Sam watching him with a amused expression.

"What's so funny, Sammy?"

Sam smirked. "Oh, nothing..."

Dean's eyebrows shot up in a silent question, but he decided to drop the topic. Nothing would distract him from the mug of liquid heaven in his hands. At least that was the plan.

"Dean" Cas giggled.

"Huh?"

He turned around to face his friend, who, for some reason, burst out laughing.

Dean frowned.

"Oh come on! What are you, five?"

Cas stopped laughing, but an amused expression remained on his features.

"Sorry. Dean, there's whipped cream on your nose."

"Which is really an improvement, by the way."

Dean rolled his eyes.

"Shut up, Sam. Jesus, grow up, you two..."

He sighed and reached for his napkin to clean his face.

"Better?" he asked his friend.

"Better." replied Cas with a smile.

Later, while they were busy talking and laughing and being happy, Dean paused for a moment and tuned his friends out. He looked out of the window and watched the snowflakes dance outside. Friends... He smiled to himself. He never had friends. He used to trust no-one but his own family. To be around people who cared for him was new for him. But it felt... good. It made him happy. And the most fascinating thing was that he, Dean Winchester, cared for them, too.


	4. Chapter 4

woohoo! Christmas chapter! Have fun :) Also, thank you so much for your lovely comments! When I started this fic I didn't expect _anyone_ would read it... so, thank you! I love you all!

* * *

**Chapter Four**

"Jeez, what is it with everyone being all excited about Christmas?! What's so special about it anyway?" Dean growled.

It was only three weeks to Christmas, and the whole fluffy-holiday-ohmygodlookitssnowing-atmosphere was really grating on his nerves. There seemed to be no other topic than Christmas anymore. Even Sam, of whom Dean had thought he'd back him up, had turned into a happy, excited holiday moose.

But the worst thing was that this mood was contagious. Dean had caught himself humming cheesy Christmas songs on various occasions and felt like slapping himself for it. This nonsense had to stop.

"Why, don't you like Christmas?" Castiel asked curiously from his seat next to Dean.

Dean turned in his chair to face his friend. He frowned.

"It's not that I don't like it, I just think people are overreacting a bit. For me, Christmas has never been something to be very excited about."

"Why?"

"Uhm... You know, it was never this happy, fluffy family thing for me... Dad was usually working or drunk, so Sammy and I spent the evening in front of the TV, minding our own business. We probably didn't have a proper Christmas since Mom died..."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know. But I understand how you feel, Dean."

"No need to apologise, Cas! Anyway, looks like Sam and I are staying here during the holidays... what about you?"

Castiel's expression dropped. All of a sudden, he looked so hurt and lost that Dean could feel an unpleasant sting in his chest.

"Oh sh- I'm sorry, Cas!"

Castiel cleared his throat and looked up to meet Dean's worried emerald eyes.

"I... It's alright. It's just... Just the thought of having to see my parents and feel them judging me the whole time... I don't want to go home."

Dean sighed and squeezed his shoulder reassuringly.

"Hey, why don't you stay here with us? We could watch some movies, just have a good time..."

"Are you sure? I don't want to impose on you."

Dean frowned. "Seriously, Cas. we talked about this. You are my friend and I like having you around, so stop acting like you don't deserve that. So, do you want to spend Christmas with me and Sam?"

Castiel's face lit up and his lips spread into a warm smile.

"I'd love to."

Suddenly, Crowley's well-dressed English form appeared next to them.

"This is all _very_ heartwarming, but would you gents pay attention to my lesson now? If it's not to much trouble for you..."

* * *

After dinner, the boys retreated to their room.

Dean was lying on his bed, propped up on his elbows with his homework in front of him. Despite the freezing temperatures outside it was cozily warm in their room, so Dean didn't have to bother looking for a shirt. He had taken it off after parts of his dinner landed on it.

Castiel sat opposite on his own bed, clothes flawless as ever and his usual blue tie loosened a bit. A few months back, Dean had found Castiel's fashion-sense weird, because come on, how many 17-year-olds run about in a shirt, tie and trench coat? Now he actually liked it. Sure, the outfit was still a bit strange, but then again it was so significantly _Cas_ that Dean would be worried if his friend ever decided to wear something else.

None of them said a word, both focused on whatever they were doing. Out of the corner of his eye, Dean noticed that his friend was scribbling around on his notepad, probably drawing something. He didn't give it a second thought and brought his attention back to his homework. This stupid essay he had to do for Crowley wouldn't write itself.

After a while, he looked up again and noticed that Castiel's gaze shifted between Dean and his drawing and back to Dean.

"Are you drawing me like one of your french girls, Cas?" Dean said with a husky voice.

His friend looked up with a confused look on his face.

"Sorry, I don't understand that reference"

Dean rolled his eyes. "_Titanic_? Come on, even though that movie sucks, it's kinda common knowledge..."

Castiel blushed, seemingly remembering the movie.

Dean chuckled. "Never mind, Cas. Draw me as much as you like..."

The other boy smiled warmly and resumed his sketch.

"Okay, but don't move."

* * *

About a week after the drawing incident, Dean and his brother decided that it was about time to go shopping for christmas presents, so they went to town after school.

The streets were crowded with people who apparently had the same idea, so they walked into what Dean likes to call the "nerd store". As they sauntered around in the video game department, Sam asked curiously "Dean? What is it with you and Cas?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Sam blushed. "Uhm... you know, back at the café a few weeks ago, you two were behaving kinda weird. Almost looked like you have the hots for each other..."

Dean's face turned tomato red.

"Whaa- No! I mean, we're just friends! Why do you think we're together?"

Sam chuckled. "I dunno... It's just... you two are almost inseparable and you always stare at each other like you're utterly in love."

"Dude, you're reading too much into it. I'm not gay. And I'm pretty sure Cas isn't, either."

Sam smirked. "Yeah, sure..."

Dean's mind drifted off while his brother dragged him along through the shops.

Sam's words nagged on him, and he couldn't help to think about it.

He definitely wasn't gay, so much for starters. It's not that he had anything against gays, he just didn't swing that way. Dean never really had time for any romantic involvements because he moved around so much, but he was always pretty sure he liked girls. Though he had to admit that Cas was kinda handsome. In a no-homo way of manly appreciation. His messy dark hair and those insanely blue eyes were definitely attractive. And the way he always tilted his head when he was confused...

As soon as Dean realised where this was going, he blushed and tried to push the thought away. Not gay, remember? He definitely wouldn't start drooling over his best friend.

* * *

Christmas came around faster than anyone expected. Of course it was still on the same day as every year, but the last 2 weeks always tend to go by in barely more than the blink of an eye.

For Christmas Eve, the boys had decided to go out for dinner and watch the entire _Die Hard_ quadrilogy afterwards (Dean had insisted on this, claiming these were "the best christmas movies in the history of ever!"). Sam disappeared into his room after they got back from the restaurant, giving Dean and Castiel time to prepare their room for the movie night.

They cleaned up the mess of clothes, books and other random things while listening to Cas's nerd-music. Some band called _SPOCK..._Dean laughed.

"You didn't strike me as a Trekkie, Cas! Any other dirty secrets I should know?"

Castiel smiled and said nothing.

They set up the TV they had managed to borrow from the common room and pushed the beds together since they didn't have a sofa.

When they were done, Dean rummaged through the drawer of his desk and produced a flat rectangular object wrapped in plain green paper with a red bow on top.

"By the way, I have something for you, Cas."

Castiel looked up, his sapphire eyes wide. Then he slapped himself on the forehead.

"Stupid me! Wait a moment, you get something, too!"

Dean stood and waited, his eyebrow raised and a smirk on his face while his friend hastily digged through his shelf. When Castiel turned around, he held a blue-wrapped box in his hands that was about the size of a shoebox.

"Here. Come on, open it!"

Dean grinned and complied. He carefully tore the paper open, revealing a plain black box. He opened the lid and gasped in amazement. Inside was a miniature model of his car. He took it out of its packaging and took a closer look. It was perfect. Every detail was right, even the license plates. He turned his gaze back to Cas, who was smiling widely.

"Do you like it?"

Dean stared. "Like it? Cas, I love it! It's- no, _you're_ amazing! Thank you!"

He grinned and put the car on his nightstand.

"Okay, now it's your turn." He reached for the present and pushed it into Castiel's slender hands.

Dean watched warily as his friend unwrapped the gift. His lips spread into a wide smile when Cas's eyes widened at the sight of the huge, leather-bound book in his hands. Castiel turned it around and gently ran his fingers over the smooth, dark green cover. He opened it and saw that all the pages were blank, only waiting for him to fill them with his drawings.

"Dean, this is beautiful!"

Dean chuckled. "Glad you like it... I thought you'd rather have a sketchbook than always drawing on loose sheets."

He gasped when Cas suddenly flung himself into his arms, embracing him tightly.

"Thank you so much! Thank you, thank you, _thank you_!"

Dean laughed and patted his friend's back.

Without warning, Sam barged in, a bag of chips and a bottle of Coke in his hands.

"Are you guys done cuddling? You know, we have kind of a tight schedule with the movies!"

Castiel blushed, pulled away and placed the sketchbook on his desk.

* * *

It was towards the end of the fourth movie when Sam noticed the other boys have gone rather silent. He turned his head to check if they were still alive and witnessed a rather endearing scene: Both Dean and Castiel were asleep and Dean had his arm around Cas's shoulders. Cas was cuddled against Dean's chest, his face hidden under his mop of black hair. Sam almost let out an extremely un-manly squeal, but didn't want to wake them up. Instead, he pulled out his phone and quickly shot a picture. Just in case Dean denied being gay again.

After the movie ended, he left the room quietly. Before closing the door, he glanced back to Dean and Cas, who somehow fell into a more horizontal position, Dean unconsciously pulling Cas closer to his chest.

* * *

Merry Christmas my lovelies! I'll be back in a week with the new chapter :)


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